HOLY WEEK RESURRECTION SUNDAY: JESUS IS ALIVE!!!

Read Matthew 28:1-20 On this Sunday, nearly 2000 years ago, Jesus rose from the dead!!!!!!! This is the climax of Holy Week! The resurrection of Jesus Christ is THE #1 most important event in the Christian faith! It makes or breaks everything I believe about Jesus. Oh and, by the way, the Apostle Paul said the same thing too (1 Corinthians 15:17-20). Early Sunday morning several women (Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Joanna, and Salome are all mentioned in the Gospels) went to the tomb and discovered that the large stone covering the tomb's entrance had been rolled away. Then – how cool is this, an angel tells ‘em “not to freak out.” (HA – too late!) "Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn't here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen." (Matthew 28:5-6) On the day of his resurrection, the first person to see him was Mary Magdalene. Jesus also appeared to Peter, to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, later that day to all of the disciples except Thomas (while they were gathered in a house for prayer) and to 500 others gathered at the same time! And according to Acts 1, He was here on earth for 40 days! This was no mirage, no magic trick or even their eyes playing tricks on them. Jesus REALLY was and IS alive! The eyewitness accounts in the Bible provide undeniable evidence that the resurrection of Jesus Christ happened. And Jesus is just as ALIVE today as He was then! SO WHAT?!~ - How do you treat Jesus? As an impersonal being, a “force” or as the Living God who deeply desires a relationship with you and me?!~ - Last words mean a lot. Jesus last words before He left this planet are recorded in Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 1:7-8! Read them over again now and ask yourself: How am I making disciples and how am I being a witness for Jesus? The one thing we have the privilege of doing here that we won’t do in heaven is make disciples and witness. So let’s be all about it here and now!~

HOLY WEEK SATURDAY: Dead in the Tomb

John 19:38-42 Jesus' body is in the tomb and being guarded by Roman soldiers throughout the day on Saturday. It was the Sabbath, so when that ended (at 6pm), Christ's body was ceremonially treated for burial with spices purchased by Nicodemus. Nicodemus, like Joseph of Arimathea, was a member of the Sanhedrin, the peeps which had condemned Jesus Christ to death. Both these guys had lived as secret followers of Jesus, afraid to make a public profession of faith because of their prominent positions in the Jewish community. But now they both were deeply affected by Christ's death and came out of hiding! They had count the cost and were now risking their reputations and their lives because they now realized Jesus was, indeed, the long-awaited Messiah! How cool is that?!~ Together they cared for Jesus' body and prepared it for burial. Jesus had offered Himself as the perfect, spotless sacrifice! “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” – 1 Peter 1:18-19 SO WHAT?!~ - What has it cost you and what is it costing you to live for Jesus? It should cost something. Jesus Himself told us to “count the cost.” Our ME-centered Christianity knows very little of cost, risk and sacrifice. King David said that he would not sacrifice to the Lord that which cost him nothing (2 Samuel 24:24). It cost Paul, It cost the disciples, it cost Jesus. How about you? Would you get up early to pray? Would you give of your finances, talents and resources? Would you make time in your schedule to: Read your Bible? Serve at your church? Mentor a student? Feed the hungry? And the list goes on. Jesus came that we might have life to the full – for HIM - not us! Lord help us to count the cost, to serve You, sacrifice for You, risk for You and to daily know You, walk with You and make You known!

HOLY WEEK GOOD FRIDAY: Good Friday For Us Was Bad Friday For Jesus

Read Matthew 27:1-61 Today, Good Friday, is without question the roughest, most treacherous and painful day Jesus faced during these final hours before his death. Soooooooo much happening today! Judas felt bad (not repentance) and hanged himself early Friday morning. Before the third hour (9 a.m.), Jesus endured false accusations, condemnation, mockery, beatings, and abandonment. After multiple illegal trials, he was sentenced to death by crucifixion - the most horrible and disgraceful way to kill a person. Words cannot describe what went on next. Jesus was led away, soldiers spit on him, tormented and mocked him, and pierced him with a crown of thorns. They made Him carry his own cross to Calvary where he was mocked and insulted again as Roman soldiers hammered nails through his hands and feet into a wooden cross. From the 6th hour until the 9th hour (noon to 3pm) darkness covered the land. As Jesus hung & suffered on the cross, he asked His Daddy to forgive the people (Luke 23:34), told a criminal that they’d be in paradise together (Luke 23:43), told His mother and John that they were now family (John 19:26-27), felt like God had ditched Him (Mark 15:34), was thirsty (John 19:28), said “It is finished” (John 19:30) and at the 9th hour(3pm), right before He died, He committed His spirit into God’s hands (Luke 23:46). At that moment, the curtain of the Temple was torn in two, earth shook, rocks split and zombies came out! All of this to supernaturally mark an undeniable event! By 6 p.m. Good Friday evening, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, took Jesus' body down from the cross and put it in a tomb. SO WHAT?!~ - Being treated wrongly, unfairly and unjustly stinks! Every bone in my body wants to speak up and prove myself right. And there are certainly times for that. What amazes me about Jesus was He considered MY life (and yours) worth more than being right. He had a much higher focus. Even the apostle Paul wrote, “Why not rather be wronged, why not rather be cheated?” (1 Cor 6:7) - “It Is Finished” are three of the best words in the Bible! The payment Jesus made on the cross by giving HIS life for MY sin is ENOUGH! Nothing more is needed. Jesus + anything is not free grace! All it takes is simple, childlike faith in the person & work of Jesus. Grace is both scandalous and awesome! - The Bible says that on this Friday, from the 6th hour until the 9th hour (noon – 3pm) darkness covered the land. It’s been our family tradition to have lunch in the dark on Good Friday. We eat, read the Bible passage above and talk about what it must have been like for Jesus. Maybe something like this will help your family to remember Jesus too!

HOLY WEEK THURSDAY: Humility, Communion, Garden Prayer & Arrest

Read Luke 22:1-65 On Thursday of Holy Week, we see a sobering turn in the life of Jesus. From Bethany Jesus sent Peter and John ahead to the find a guy carrying a jar who would show them an upper room in Jerusalem where they could make the preparations for the Passover feast (celebrating the Jews being freed from slavery in Egypt – Exodus 12) – pretty cool. That evening after sunset, Jesus washed the feet of his disciples as they prepared to share in the Passover. What a humbling act of service by our Lord! Jesus demonstrated, by example, how we are to love one another (Many churches today will have “Maundy Thursday” services where they do foot washings as well as a Passover meal & communion). After this foot washing, Jesus shared the feast of Passover with his disciples, something he was extremely passionate about doing one final time. Jesus, the Lamb of God, was about to fulfill the meaning of the Passover by giving his body to be broken and his blood to be shed in sacrifice, freeing you and me from sin and death! During this “Last Supper”, Jesus established what we call today the Lord's Supper or Communion. The reason we take communion today is because Jesus told us to regularly remember Him and what He did: And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. Later, Jesus and the disciples left this upper room and went to the Garden of Gethsemane (located at the bottom of the Mount of Olives). Jesus prayed like never before to His Daddy in Heaven, wanting to do His Daddy’s will and at the same time agonizing with what He was about to face. The Bible then tells us that later that evening in Gethsemane, Jesus was betrayed with a kiss by Judas Iscariot and arrested by the Sanhedrin. He was taken to the home of Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the whole council had gathered to begin making their case against Jesus. It was while these illegal trials began in the middle of the night, that Peter would deny knowing his Master three times before the rooster crowed on Friday morning. SO WHAT?!~ - Humility is one of Jesus’ characteristics and is meant to be the character of all believers. How is your humility? Is there anyone with whom you need to seek forgiveness with or humble yourself before? Do it today. - In the Exodus Passover, the Lord would “pass over” all the homes that had blood on their doorframes and not bring judgment and death. Today, in the same way, when we trust in the blood of Jesus alone to forgive our sins, God does not punish us for our sins and instead gives us eternal life – WHOOHOOO!~ Have you put your trust & faith in what Jesus did for you? If not, why not do that right now and receive eternal life?!~ It doesn’t get any better than this! - Who are your “Garden Friends?” Peter, James & John may have gotten a bad rap for falling asleep in the garden instead of being in prayer with our Lord – but at least they were THERE! Who are those 2-3 friends who are “there” for you? Why not thank the Lord for them today?! And then maybe ask yourself as well - who am I a “garden friend” to? - Finally, ever be treated unfairly? If so, be assured that Jesus knows how you feel. Sometimes it’s better to be mistreated, rather than prove you are right. Let’s watch how Jesus responds tomorrow…

HOLY WEEK WEDNESDAY: The Calm Before The Storm

Read Psalm 23 Because of what Revelation 22:18-19 says, I’ve always tried my best to teach what the Bible teaches and not to teach what it doesn’t teach! With that said, the Bible doesn't say exactly what the Lord did on Wednesday of Passion Week. Scholars (smarter than me) believe that after two exhausting days in Jerusalem, Jesus and his disciples spent this day resting in Bethany with Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Bethany was about two miles east of Jerusalem. Most likely Mary, Martha & Lazarus hosted Jesus and the disciples during these final days in Jerusalem. With this in mind, it’s kinda’ cool to think about how Jesus spent this final quiet day with His Dad in heaven and with His closest friends & followers. SO WHAT?!~ - Silence & solitude is a rare thing in our culture, yet a must if we intend to have a deep relationship with Jesus! Where, when and how do you spend time alone with Jesus? - Take time today to get alone with Jesus. If this is not a regular practice for you and you’d like it to become one but need ideas, I’ve got plenty of ideas for ya’ – just ask! If this IS a regular practice for you, share with me what you do. I’m always looking for fresh ways to deepen my own time with Jesus!

HOLY WEEK TUESDAY: A Withered Tree, Trickery, End Times & Betrayal

Read Mark 11:20-26, Matthew23:24-33 & Matthew 26:14-16 Tuesday was a pretty busy day fore our Lord! On this morning, Jesus and his disciples returned to Jerusalem. They passed the withered fig tree on their way, and observant Peter pointed it out! Class is always in session with our Jesus, so the disciples took yet another opportunity to learn from their Lord about faith & prayer! When they reached the Temple, the religious leaders challenged Jesus' authority and tried to trick & trap Him with questions: “Is it right to pay taxes to Casear?” “Which is the greatest commandment?” “By what authority are you doing these things?” Yadda, Yadda, Yadda…….. did they think they’d trip up GOD?!~ Jesus talked right thru their traps and pronounced harsh judgment on them: Woe, Woe, Woe, Woe, Woe, Woe, Woe – 7 times He exposes who they are! Hyporcrites, Blind guides, whitewashed tombs, snakes, brood of vipers!~ Tuesday afternoon Jesus left the city and went with his disciples to the Mount of Olives, which overlooks Jerusalem due east of the Temple. Here Jesus gave what is known as the “Olivet Discourse”, which is an elaborate prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the age. He taught in parables (symbolic language) about end times stuff. And Ha - the religious leaders knew these parables made them look bad – duh! Finally, Tuesday was also the day Judas went to the Sanhedrin (the Holy Heavies) and negotiated with them to betray Jesus. After a tiring day of confrontation and warnings about the future, once again, Jesus and the disciples stayed the night in Bethany. SO WHAT?!~ - How is your faith? Your prayer life? We don’t need a lot of faith, just a little faith in a BIG God! - Jesus did not have very kind words for those whose focus was to look good on the outside and whose hearts were far from Him. How about us? God knows our hearts. Is there anything we need to ask forgiveness of so we can get our hearts right? If so, do it now. The sooner you learn you can’t trick Jesus, the better. - Ever been betrayed by a friend? I have and pretty recently. It’s extremely painful and your heart doesn’t want to forgive. But if ever there is a time when we can imitate our Lord’s difficulties, this is one. Make it a point today to CHOOSE to forgive, even if the feelings aren’t there yet. AND, if you are the one who has betrayed, go seek forgiveness – today!

Holy Week Monday: Holy Flippin' Tables!~

Read Matthew 21:12-17 On Monday morning, Jesus returned with his disciples to Jerusalem. Along the way, He cursed a fig tree because it had failed to bear fruit. When Jesus arrived at the Temple he found corrupt moneychangers ripping people off. Now, I’ve always had people tell me that when I get into a situation and I don’t know what to do, I should ask, “What Would Jesus Do?” – You know WWJD? Ha – not thinking I would have come up with what happened next!~ Jesus began flipping their tables and clearing the Temple, saying, "The Scriptures declare, 'My Temple will be a house of prayer,' but you have turned it into a den of thieves." Jesus was ticked off – a holy ticked off – and He let ‘em know the sin that they were involved in! Apparently Jesus didn’t take the course on “How to Win Friends and Influence Neighbors!” (LOL) Religiosity always angers our Lord who wants to have a personal relationship with us! That evening Jesus again stayed in Bethany, most likely in the home of his friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. SO WHAT?! - Jesus said that if we remain in Him, we WILL bear much fruit. (John 15:5) How are you & I “remaining” in Him? - What “fruit” are you and I currently producing? - If Jesus came to our churches on Sunday, would he be flipping over tables? - More than that, the Bible says our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. How are we treating God’s temple?

2013 Palm Sunday

“A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” – Matthew 21:8-9 This Sunday is Palm Sunday – a pretty historically significant day in the life of Jesus! On the Sunday before his upcoming Friday crucifixion, Jesus entered the city of Jerusalem, riding on a donkey. The crowds knew He was coming, they had heard of all He had been doing, so they laid palm branches down as a sign of worship and were screaming “Hosanna” which means save us. They wanted Jesus to save them from Roman rule but He had something far greater in mind. He had come to restore their relationship with His Dad – a relationship that we too lost because of our sin. Tragically, many of those yelling “save us” on this day, were the same people just a few days later yelling “crucify him.” Why is it that we often seem to be content with lesser, when God wants to give us better? Jesus was killed in our place, to remove our sin, to restore our relationship with Him and to offer us our place in heaven for eternity with Him and his Father. And He offers this to ALL who simply trust in Him!~ I was twenty one when someone first shared this with me and I believed & received! How about you? Have your ever put your trust & faith in Jesus alone for the forgiveness of your sin and the hope of eternal life? You can right now, right where you are, by simply telling God what is on your heart: “I’m not perfect, I’ve sinned. You God are perfect and must punish sin. But I believe Jesus took the punishment I deserved and today I am trusting in Him alone to remove my sin and make me right with You!” The moment you believe this you begin a journey with God that starts now and lasts forever! SO WHAT?! Since October of 1982 when I put my trust in Jesus, God has put a desire in my heart to both Know Him and Make Him Known. If today is your first day as a new believer, He will give you that desire as well. If you’re already a believer, God wants us share this great news with as many as we can so they too can be brought into this amazing relationship with Jesus! Here is my challenge for us all: Tomorrow, for The CORE, we'll be discussing with students the above passage and what Palm Sunday is about. Would you prayerfully join us in the following application? The palm branches remind us of what Jesus did for us, so tomorrow, we'll be using the palm of our hand to remind us of those He died for. Think of 3 friends who don’t know Jesus yet and lets write their names on our palms. Then lets ask the Lord, as we look at those names this week on our hands, to remind us that they are crying out “save us”. And then, lets ask God to give us the opportunity to talk to them about Jesus this week! Maybe even by just asking them, "What does Easter mean to you?" What an opportunity! What a worthy cause! May this be your best "Palm" Sunday ever because God gave one of your friends the opportunity to Hear, Understand & Respond to the Good News of Jesus!

2013 SYMC

This past weekend, Jean & I got to attend, for the fourth time, the Simply Youth Ministry Conference - and it ROCKED!~ #2800+ youth workers from across the nation (& world) coming together to become STRONGER!~ This year was the best of the four straight we've been privileged to be a part of. Personally, we came this year much healthier than last year (unemployed - yuk). We came, determined to focus on the relationship core value the most, although we left experiencing the others as well. As we arrived, we got a Facebook message from Rodney & Emily, a couple that we connected with from our Veterans in Youth Ministry connect group that we led last year. We were able to have lunch Friday with them, reconnect and talk life & ministry - Totally Cool! We also got a chance to hit the hotel diner, Velocity, and spend some time with Darren, Katie and Troy. we also got to have lunch with Jonathan and Josh - two guys we first connected with at IT Summit two years ago. (Congrats on your marriage in 12 days Josh!) What we didn't know, before coming, is that we would develop so many new, even deep, relationships with those in our Transitions connect group, many who came to peer panels AND those on the peer panels!~ Dan & Becke with Cadence are transitioning from Germany to Korea - yeah, you heard me. And they share both their struggles and excitement! Aaron is leaving his current church to go back for moire school - needs to sell their home & a million other things. Jody left her church to begin a new ministry, has no idea how it will be funded, yet clear leading by the Lord to go for it! It was both humbling to listen and TOTALLY AWESOME to spend some time in prayer with these, and others, asking God to be in the center of their transitioning! Then - oh my goodness - in the peer panels I was privileged to be a part of, I learned soooooo much! I got to know Tony Miles, Brian Berry, Wayne Yeager, David Perez, Jon Kelly, Len Evans, Jody, Liz Simmonds, Kelly Cohea and John Mulholland so much better. LOVED listening to heir wisdom too and, not sure if it was legal or not, but was taking notes on my phone as I listened! It was soooo great to listen to the questions (and wisdom) of all those who came and even get with them afterwards so we can connect after SYMC. (I've already connected with two peeps who came to those panels.) Sunday Night IT3 Par-Tay was a "taste of glory divine" - hangin' offline with my online family was GREAT! Thanks Jason & Rick soooo much for all you do!~ Monday morning Mama Caro had a "small church breakfast" and it was cool to get with Ross, who came to one of my peer panels. We exchanged info and have already connected since returning. We were also able to both listen to and pray with some IT3ers who are really struggling. I remember REALLY wanting and needing those prayers a year ago myself! Finally, yeah, we loved the general sessions and we even sat in on a few workshops too - LOL!~ Darren, Steph, Brandon, Greg - y'all rocked those times!~ So - my Top 3 take aways: 1 - Relationships trump everything else! 2 - We need to get going on recruiting more volunteers for LEGACY! 3 - Thankful God sent us home stronger! Until IT3 Summit, mrbill Philippians 1:3-6